Morphological Changes of Removable Orthodontic Retainers During the Use

Plain-language summary

The retention is one of the stages of orthodontic treatment that aims to keep the teeth in the correct positions after orthodontic treatment. Without a retention phase, there is a tendency for the teeth to return to their initial position (relapse). To prevent relapse, at the end of orthodontic therapy the use of retaining devices to keep the teeth in their ideal position is required. The aim of the study is to analyse whether intraoral aging of removable retention devices can lead to morphological or dimensional changes, and whether or not these changes are related to orthodontic relapse, expressed as a change in the Peer Assessment Rating (PAR) index. The PAR index is an index that allows us to evaluate the relapse after orthodontic treatment. In this study the PAR index will be measured at the start of the retention period (T0), at the three-months follow-up (T1) and at the six months follow-up (T2). In particular, two types of thermoformed retainers with different cutouts will be evaluated to determine whether the presence of higher margins in a type of retainers allows to maintain greater stability over time and, therefore, to confer a mechanical and clinical advantage.

Who can participate

What they're measuring

Trial details